(Seguin) — A Guadalupe County prosecutor looks to pick up the Republican nomination for the position of Judge of the 25th Judicial District.
Jacqueline Phillips Ott will be seeking the nomination during the March 3 Primary Election. The 25th Judicial District includes the counties of Guadalupe, Gonzales, Lavaca and Colorado.
Ott, an assistant county attorney, says she begins the new year by continuing her campaign for the position. Ott says she believes a place on the bench will allow her to better serve the constituents in all four counties.
“State district judge, I believe, is a position that carries a lot of honor with it. It would be such a privilege to be able to serve the community in that capacity. I have watched my father and my aunt both serve as state district judges for 16 and 24 years respectively and I believe that I have an appropriate understanding of what a courtroom needs to be (to) run efficiently — what demeanor is appropriate to make all the persons that enter a courtroom feel respected whether those persons are people that are working in the courtroom, people that are part of the system or they are people that are coming to you because they have cases whether that’s on the criminal or civil side,” said Ott.
Ott, who has worked for Guadalupe County since 2014, says her wealth of experience obtained through her work with the county as well as with her private legal practice are what she believes will help her better carry out the law.
“I have worked both in private practice through the DA’s and now county attorney’s office in both civil and criminal life and practiced in a variety of civil laws while that includes, family, law cases, custody, divorces, attorney general cases, child support, mental health cases, oil and gas. I’ve also done some time with criminal defense work. I have been a civil and criminal prosecutor doing CPS and criminal cases on every single level. I have worked in several specialty areas including family justice cases, CPS cases, family violence cases, sexual abuse cases, general felonies, general misdemeanors, justice of the peace courts and I believe that a person that wants to run for a position such as a district judge in a court that covers all of those categories should be a person that has practiced in all of those categories. So, that’s one of the reasons why I decided to run for this court. I think that I have a lot to bring to the table and a lot to bring to this position that would show a well rounded background,” said Ott.
Ott says having several family members who are veterans and who are members of law enforcement also help her to bring a different perspective to the job.
She says it’s also vital that, if elected, her courtroom allows for the full implementation of the law — bringing justice to all those who come through its doors.
“I will tell you that I have a done a lot of specific work with crime victims both children and adults and I believe that that experience really brings a good perspective into those peoples’ mindset and what they have been through and I think that as a judge, it’s very important to have that experience and understand what’s going on and what these people have been through to really be able to make sure that you can be fair and understanding to their perspective. I’ve done a lot of work as well with the foster care system, with adoptions, with CPS and understanding a lot of what these families really go through and the results and effects of crimes that children have been witnesses to or victims of and I think that is also extremely important. Children have always been and will always be a priority to me and I want to make sure that the court prioritizes those cases, priorities those people and makes sure that we are as efficient and quick as possible in getting those cases heard appropriately so these people can move on with their lives,” said Ott.
Ott faces current State District Judge William “Bill” Old who is seeking re-election. Old is serving his second term as Judge of the 25th Judicial District of Texas.
The Republican Primary Election is scheduled for Tuesday, March 3. The winner of the primary election would essentially earn the position as there are no candidates for the state district judge position on the Democratic ballot in November.